Welcome back … Pokemon Go Style

How are you? Been a while, right? I’m sorry for the delay in posting – committee work has been at its peak in the past few months, and while I’m reading up a storm, I can’t post a lot about what I’m reading (right now) until official lists are submitted and/or published. Let’s just say that this fall/winter is going to be AMAZING for books for all kinds of readers. Seriously. I haven’t read so many incredible titles in a very long time, and it’s kind of killing me not to be able to talk about them online … so come and find me over the next few months at the library, or in the bookstore, or at an author event and I’ll tell you what needs to be on your fall TBR list.

At any rate, I’m trying to get back into the swing of things, and what better way to do that then with something fun, courtesy of my lovely friend Michele at Just a Lil’ Lost. She tagged me to take part in the Pokemon GO Book Tag event waaay back when, and it seemed like a fun way to reintroduce my weary brain to the computer.

Pokemon GO is still a HUGE hit at our library branches – one is a Poke Stop, while the other is a Gym, so we have kids in and out all the time and they love talking about their catches. We noticed a resurgence this summer in Pokemon related books and video games as well, so to my mind, anything that brings kids back to the library is a good thing. Originally created by Read at Midnight, this book tag features many Pokémon-themed categories that participants must match up books to. It’s a really fun idea, so let’s get started…

One of my first reading memories is tied to my parents signing me up for magazines (why, hello Wee Wisdom and Chickadee) and hardcover books by mail. I cannot express how excited I was to receive mail, because it was something I could READ. Since this supposed to be book-themed, I’ll go with one of my favourite arrivals from the Dr. Seuss Book Club: Go Dog Go. I have vivid recollections of sitting at the table out at dinner with my family with this book in my hands, carefully sounding out each page to my mother again … and again … and again. Have I mentioned that my mother is kind of a saint?

There is no debate about this one. Lucy Maud Montgomery will always have my heart, and the Anne books are an auto-re-read for me. To me, these stories are timeless and every time a patron checks them out at the library I’m a little envious of them for discovering them for the first time.

When you add in some delicious new covers in a variety of formats, and I will never regret time spent on these books. My mother shared her copies with me, and I’ve shared mine with my nieces – long may the tradition continue!

Sorry devoted fans, but I couldn’t do it.

I skimmed the last 150 pages because I found it overhyped and boring. If you really want a Gillian Flynn, try her earlier works.

I don’t think that this one may actually qualify, but since I can’t think of anything else, I’m going to go with Marissa Meyer’s Lunar Chronicles. I do so love a good fairy tale retelling, but they can get a bit tedious, and if they aren’t done well, they can be disastrous. I read Cinder (finally) at the right time and the right place and it was game over, people. I ADORE this series, primarily because they make me so freaking happy to read and to listen to.

Not even going to hide this one … Game of Thrones!

There’s also the added niggling fact that it’s not a completed series, and that GRRM doesn’t seem to be in any great hurry to change that. Life has a way of playing funny games, and I’ve already been heavily invested in a series only to have the creator die mid-way through, and I won’t repeat that error again. Harsh, but necessary.

It wasn’t a perfect book, but I still remember staying up until all hours of the early morning to finish The Fifth Wave by Rick Yancey. It was so compelling, and I just wanted to keep reading and reading and reading. I remember tweeting the friend who sent it to me and blaming her for my book hangover the next day. Having said that, I’m ashamed to admit that I still haven’t read the rest of the books in the series!

I’m going to go old-school here and grab my favourite Agatha Christie pairing, Tommy & Tuppence. There’s something reassuringly flawed about this detective duo, who first meet in the middle of a mystery (and a con, if we’re to be honest), and end up in later stories as a happily retired couple. Witty, smart, and very much there for each other, they are the perfect flawed couple. They’ve had a bit of a resurgence lately as there’s been a new “Partners in Crime” TV series in the UK that has moved them to post-war England, with loyal handyman now a former bomb-disposal expert turned teacher at their son’s school, and the casting is deliciously perfect.

I’m going to put one of my favourite ‘popcorn’ reads in here – that is, the kind of book that you read so deeply and quickly that you eat an entire container of popcorn without realizing it. “Owl and the Japanese Circus” and its follow-up by Kristi Charish definitely fits this category. Part Indiana Jones/Laura Croft, part supernatural fun, this series is total catnip for me.

“Ex-archaeology grad student turned international antiquities thief, Alix—better known now as Owl—has one rule. No supernatural jobs. Ever. Until she crosses paths with Mr. Kurosawa, a red dragon who owns and runs the Japanese Circus Casino in Las Vegas. He insists Owl retrieve an artifact stolen three thousand years ago, and makes her an offer she can’t refuse: he’ll get rid of a pack of vampires that want her dead. A dragon is about the only entity on the planet that can deliver on Owl’s vampire problem – and let’s face it, dragons are known to eat the odd thief. Owl retraces the steps of Mr. Kurosawa’s ancient thief from Japan to Bali with the help of her best friend, Nadya, and an attractive mercenary.”

Millions would likely agree with me that the world needs many things, and more Harry Potter is part of that. Again, the series may not be perfect, but as someone who is re-reading the series via audio book and who has logged literally dozens of hours with Harry, Ron and Hermione this summer, I am an unabashed fan. In fact, Michele and I already have our tickets for Harry Potter and the Cursed Child in London for next spring!

I had read the Robert Galbraith mystery book The Cuckoo’s Calling before I knew it was actually JK Rowling, and was really drawn into the narrative. Once the news about its author was released, I re-did the series via audiobook, and I’m totally hooked on it – narrator Robert Glenister is truly incredible, and he IS Cormoran Strike to me. All three books are not for the faint of heart, but they are brilliant. How much do I love them? I’ve convinced my local book club to pick them up!

I don’t know that I’d call it overhyped, but it’s definitely legendary! I have so many friends who have read the James A. Owen’s The Chronicles of the Imaginarium Geographica – book one is Here There Be Dragons – that I feel I’m missing something. I don’t know why I haven’t yet – they are exactly my fantasy cup of tea – but I’m going to try to get through them this year.

“What is it?” John asked.
The little man blinked and arched an eyebrow.
“It is the world, my boy,” he said. “All the world, in ink and blood, vellum and parchment, leather and hide. It is the world, and it is yours to save or lose.”

This was an easy one – one of the very limited twenty-two first editions of Alice in Wonderland published, because Lewis Carroll’s illustrator was reportedly so unhappy with the printing of the illustrations that all were withdrawn from circulation and the author asked that they be returned. As per the article in the Guardian: “Two thousand copies of the first edition of Carroll’s classic children’s story were printed in June 1865. Macmillan & Co was planning to release it on 4 July, and sent 50 advance copies to the author for him to give away. But shortly afterwards, the book’s illustrator, John Tenniel, told Carroll that he was “entirely dissatisfied with the printing of the pictures”, so the author recalled the print run and asked for the advance copies he had sent out to be returned.

Every seven years something disappears in the town of Sterling: reflections, dreams, colors, stars. When Aila Quinn arrives, she realizes why her deceased mother, Juliet, never spoke of growing up there—the town is cursed to lose the experiences that weave life together, and the theory is that Juliet is to blame. Aila sets out to clear her mother’s name with the help of George, whose goofy charm makes him a fast friend; Beas, the enigmatic violinist who writes poetry on her knees; and William, whose pull on Aila’s heart terrifies her.

I’m not a huge fan of a love triangle (or love square), but the premise of a town where something disappears every seven years is so intriguing. There are SO MANY great books by debut authors coming out that it’s hard to pick just one, but I’d love to hear what people think of this one.

I’m totally happy to wait for new books from this author because I think she’s an amazing individual, and it’s been such a pleasure to see how much she has grown as a writer since her first book. I still remember her first appearance with Lauren Oliver at our local Indigo, and how nervous she was, and when I compare that to just how confident she was at BEA this year leading a discussion with other authors, I can’t wait for her next book.

Veronica Roth, you are AMAZING, and I am more than happy to wait until Carve the Mark is ready for publication in 2017.

This is the point where I’m supposed to tag someone else to take part in this challenge, but to be honest, most of my friends have already done this. If you feel so inclined, pick up the challenge and see which books match the categories yourself.